Control Files

A Control File (type CTF file) is used to store the following information:

• Name and location of the SPE (Specification) file
• Information on the datasource as follows:

  • If the datasource is a flat file, the name and location of the file
  • If the datasource is a database table, the name of the link to the database and the SQL statement generated to query the database
  • If the datasource is a cube, the name of the link to the cube and the MDX statement generated to query the cube
• File format

The purpose of the control file is to connect the Specification files to the input data. A Control file consists of one or more records, each of which refers to one Specification file and its associated input data. This enables you to create one or more output files, each containing several application-specific tables, in a single operation.

You can use Data Bridge to generate the CTF files. Alternatively, you can generate the CTF files using a text editor, and then use Data Bridge to process them.